The Beast of Fox Hill

Thirty Nine

I will admit, the anxiety of meeting everyone tomorrow was weighing on me, but I realized after a private conversation with Cassander the reality of it. By nature and instinct, Cassander wanted to, or rather had to, do everything in his power to protect me as his mate, even if it meant putting me into awkward and anxiety inducing situations.

With his entire werewolf pack knowing who I am, they will, by their own instincts, protect me with their lives as Cassander explained to me. He told me that after being away from me for a few days with little to no knowledge on what I was doing, he wanted to insure my protection no matter what.

I didn't hate the idea of meeting everyone. I had met a handful of them already and all of them had been very welcoming. The thing that weighed on me the most was the fact that I was different. They were these mystical creatures and I was just a boring little human who writes scary books and lives in a small trailer in the woods. I was not special at all, and I'm positive they expect their alpha to have some amazing mate. Unfortunately for them, their expectations were surely about to be crushed.

After I got home, I offered Liam the couch to stay on but he said he had some things to take care of back at his kingdom. I thanked him repeatedly for the amazing time we had together and saw him off.

Cassander stuck around and we sat on the couch, telling each other what happened over the few days I was gone. He actually seemed glad that I had made so many friends while I was on my adventure with Liam. The way he explained it was similar to the reason he wanted me to meet the pack so soon. The more people we had on our side, the more allies we'd have in the chance that I was rejected by the supernatural community.

The night I arrived home resulted in sleeplessness and anxiety, but despite my sleep deprived state and swelling worry in my chest, I was determined to make this day go smoothly.

Unlike how Liam's ball was, we didn't need to go shopping because it was strictly a casual attire event. The way Cassander had explained it, being casual would make me blend in better, even if it was in such a minuscule way. I wasn't going to argue, I preferred to dress down anyway.

The weather was getting colder by the week and by now it was almost ready to start snowing. In order to keep warm, I wore a thick, fuzzy lined long sleeve burnt orange shirt with a black vest over it. On my bottom half, I wore similarly insulated leggings tucked into my boots. Though I did worry I should have dressed nicer, my thoughts were put to ease when Cassander showed up at my door in a flannel and jeans.

He immediately gave me a warm smile and hugged me, knowing I was already nervous about the days future events. He kissed the top of my head and looked at me lovingly. "Are your ready?" he asked.

"I don't really know. I'm just nervous I think," I answered honestly, giving him a forced smile. He chuckled at me and I furrowed my eyebrows.

"What's so funny?" I asked as he laughed at me.

"Oh nothing. You're going to do great today, I promise. Everyone is going to love you," he says, rubbing my arm in an attempt to comfort me.

"Or they're going to judge me and look at me like I'm some sort of alien because I'm not one of you," I say, biting my bottom lip nervously.

"They will love and respect you just like they would do with anyone else. Even if you aren't a wolf, you're still my mate and by our laws they must act accordingly," Cassander says.

I sigh, realizing there is no point in overthinking it now. In just an hour I will be meeting everyone, but was grateful to know the few I did. Having someone I know around is comforting, and I hoped it gave me a little boost enough to be whatever they hoped I could be for the pack. I may not be one of them and I may lack some of their normalities, but I was confident in myself that I was a good person and I would be able to learn how to help the pack as a normal female leader would.

"Are you worried about what they will say when a human shows up and is made their... whatever they call your female rulers?" I ask Cassander.

"They call them either a Luna or Alpha female followed by your name. And no, I am not worried at all. I know how they respect me, and I am sure they will show you the same respect and kindness as anyone else I would claim as my partner," he says confidently. I purse my lips and nod, as I had no other arguments about the situation.

I throw on an extra jacket and we leave my house and make our way to Cassander's car, a muddy black Jeep. This would be the last day without snow, as the next weeks weather forecast showed a snowy next few days. Cassander and I got into his Jeep and began the drive to his pack lands, or in other words, the belly of Fox Hill.

I watched as we drove deeper and deeper into untouched lands. The trees were tall and ancient, making a tunnel around us as we continued. It was no surprise why the werewolves were successfully living here, it was practically undiscovered by man, or at least humans anyway. As it was well known, not even skilled hunters would dare trek these woods for the chance of getting lost was higher than the chance you would be able to find your way out if you stepped foot into the dense forest.

The drive was about thirty minutes, the thickest part of the forest eventually opening up to a small colony of houses and a giant mansion at the head of it. My jaw drops as the sight unfolds before me.

"What the hell is this? This is the pack town?" I ask sounding confused and dumbfounded.

"Welcome to the Fox Hill pack," Cassander says with a proud smile.

I take in my surroundings and see there are plenty of who I assume to be werewolves in their human forms walking about and carrying on their daily lives. As they see Cassander's car and their alpha inside it, they bow their heads lightly and he nods to them as we pass by. All of them look curiously at me, the human entering their town with their alpha.

"Do they know who I am?" I ask.

"They are probably assuming at this point. All they know is that I found my mate and planned on introducing her," he says as we pull up to the mansion.

Cassander parks the vehicle next to several others and exits swiftly. In seconds, he is on my side opening my door for me. He reaches a hand out and helps me out of the Jeep and I take a moment to look around. All of the houses are made to look like cabins, giving the whole town a rustic, cozy feel. The mansion was made of bricks and despite its size, appeared quite simple in design.

"This is what we call the pack house, where most of the titled families live," Cassander says.

"Titled families?" I question.

"Yes, the alpha, beta and delta families. In our case, Booker, Zane and my families," he explains. I hum in response as we approach a brick staircase leading to a set of double doors. I take a deep breath and watch as Cassander opens the door and noise from inside begins to buzz through the air.

We walk through the door and people are wandering around, chatting and what I assume is preparing for whatever tonight holds for us. I feel my pulse increase and begin to beat harder in my chest as the anxiety of meeting new people fills my body.

"Relax, they'll love you," Cassander says, placing his hand on the small of my back. I swallow hard, and try to take a few deep breathes. I bite my lower lip as we walk into the house and eyes begin to fall on me.

A familiar face catches my eye; Booker walking in our direction. A small smile grows on his lips as he approaches Cassander and I.

"Welcome to the homestead," he says to me.

"Thanks Booker," I reply and a small smile forms on my lips as well. I hope the rest of the pack and family are as welcoming. I know the repetition in my thoughts, but it seems to be all I can think of right now.

More and more faces turn to see the new girl in the room, and soon enough their becomes thick with curiosity and what I'd describe as shock. I'm sure that was entirely because I was not a werewolf like the surrounding beings.

"Show time,"